The current Town Plan -- which is available on the town website and
contains a large number of facts and policies that directly affect local
property values, tax rates and community -- places a significant
premium on preservation of the Northfield Ridge. It is referenced in
numerous locations, such as how it directly affects the scenic nature of
The Valley, how it is a high-value wildlife corridor and bird migration
zone and how it is a key water source. The possibility of a wind farm
on the ridge is specifically mentioned in the text of the Town Plan: In
one chapter it is "prohibited" and in another it is "discouraged." The
Town Plan also states that development over 1,700 feet of elevation is
prohibited, a ban that implicitly affects the future of the Northfield
Ridge but has also influenced decision-making on recent projects.
The current Town Plan was provided with a public hearing in 2005 and was
subsequently approved by the Waitsfield Select Board. So, what we have
at the moment is a clear community standard that opposes commercial wind
development on the Northfield Ridge.
The phrase "clear community standard" is an essential one, as it is the
exact language used by Vermont's Public Service Board (PSB) to decide
whether or not to approve local energy installations such as wind farms.
And it was the exact phrasing used by the PSB in June to green light a
wind development in Milton, saying that the "lack of a clear community
standard against commercial wind development" was enough reason to
approve one.
There are many opinions in The Valley regarding the possibility of
commercial wind operations here. And, while anti-wind voices generally
communicate a clear position against such projects, proponents of local
wind power do not have a clear vision for how a project would look, how
it would be integrated into our community, and how it would support our
needs and values. To assume that an operating energy company would help
us establish that standard is a big leap of faith, and one that would
essentially surrender control of local land use planning to people with
different ideas and goals.
So, to preserve what we have and to do the best job possible of planning
for the future, the Planning Commission has decided not to soften the
current Town Plan position regarding wind farms on the ridge. To amend
the language of our currently clear community standard against wind
development -- without expressing a clear vision of how we would want it
to proceed -- would put us a in a very weak position.
Thinking ahead 50 years, or 20, or even 10, it's not hard to imagine
renewable energy sources as a significant part of Waitsfield's future.
But, before that can be an effective and valuable reality, the community
needs to find a balance between "any renewable energy, anywhere,
anytime" and "not here, not now, not ever." We need to discuss it with
each other, with our neighbors and with our children. And we need to
make the decision for ourselves.
Simmons serves on the Waitsfield Planning Commission.
